How Much Green Tea Should You Drink In A Day

How Much Green Tea Should I Drink?

Green tea is known to offer health benefits such as increased immunity, and a decreased risk of heart disease. Research shows that it reduces the risk of cancer.

With all of the health benefits green tea offers, you might wonder how often you should be drinking green tea? You might also wonder whether you can have too much of a good thing? Read more to find out.

What are the health benefits associated with green tea?

Green tea has been scientifically proven to offer health benefits. This is because the tea has a high flavonoid content. Flavonoids have antioxidant properties. They are anti-inflammatory, and they help to boost the immune system. This helps the body to fight cancer, reduces aging, protects the heart and fights against infection.

The University of Maryland found that green tea may help to prevent cancer. People who consume green tea regularly had a reduced risk of different types of cancer, including lung, bladder throat and breast cancer.

Green tea also assists with decreasing bad cholesterol in the body and increasing good cholesterol. As green tea contains catechins, it helps to regulate blood sugar, keeps your weight stable and lowers your metabolism. If this weren’t enough, green tea is known for its ability to help you to concentrate, and to improve cognitive functioning.

With all of the health benefits offered by green tea, it’s no wonder you’re ready to pick up your mug and start drinking. However, you might be asking what is the right amount?

How much green tea should you drink?

In tea drinking cultures around the world, many people naturally drink 2 to 3 glasses of green tea a day. This offers some optimal health benefits, and following in this tradition would give your health a significant boost. However, Dr. Zuo Feng Zhang, a cancer researcher from UCLA shares that five cups a day is a powerful way to reduce stomach cancer. He was however quite specific in making a reference to cups of tea rather than mugs.

Research seems to show that between 2 and 5 cups of tea will bring you the most benefit. However, it is helpful to make sure that your tea is not too concentrated so that you don’t overwhelm your system. To get the most health benefit per glass, make sure your tea brews slowly, allowing it to properly seek into the water.

This will ensure you get maximum health benefits with each glass you take. It is also helpful to drink green tea on an empty stomach. This helps to make the most of the antioxidant properties present in the tea.

The higher the quality of tea, the greater the antioxidant benefits, the less you will need to drink in order to gain a benefit. Loose leaf tea is said to offer the greatest health benefits, while bottled teas offer the least.

How much is too much?

Although people sometimes drink up to seven cups a day, you may overwhelm your system by drinking too much. Your goal isn’t to allow green tea to replace water in your diet. This is because green tea does contain caffeine, which can make you jittery and nervous.

Caffeine is also a diuretic, which causes your body to release water. Drinking too much caffeine can, therefore, leave you dehydrated. Green tea contains around 35 mg of caffeine per cup. Decaffeinated green tea does not offer the same health benefits.

Green tea also contains tannins, which can prevent you from properly absorbing folic acid. Folic acid is important for maintaining new cells. It also helps to produce red blood cells and is crucial for brain functioning. Pregnant women need to have folic acid to ensure the health of their developing baby.

If your body takes in too many flavonoids, present in green tea, this will prevent your body from properly absorbing nonheme iron from food. Drinking green tea with meals can have a huge effect on iron absorption, decreasing it by up to 70%. This means that you run the risk of developing anemia. People who are anemic feel short of breath, a battle to exert themselves and feel low in energy. They may have a rapid heartbeat and feel dizzy.

Green tea also has high levels of fluorine, which, in very high doses, can lead to bone disease. Fluorine levels will be higher if the tea is brewed with drinking water which contains fluoride supplements.

So, although green tea offers a great many health benefits, it is wise to limit consumption if you’re pregnant, battle with anemia or are sensitive to caffeine. If you are vegetarian, remember to take in enough iron to supplement your supplies.

Summary

Green tea is an excellent drink which has health-boosting properties. However, like all good things, green tea is best enjoyed in moderation. 2 to 5 cups of green tea a day seems to offer the optimal health benefit. Buying quality tea will boost these health benefits offered, and you will need a lower amount of tea to reap the rewards. Enjoy.

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